Max out of EU vs CN, Kolento targeted as replacement

The European side of the EU vs CN Masters Season 2 has lost its second biggest player. And rather than play through another qualifier, organizers are looking to invite a big name European to fill the spot.

Max Simpson of Method told the Daily Dot that he vacated his place in the EU vs CN Masters 2 after he failed to get a visa in time, despite having qualified over a month ago.

A replacement has not been officially named but Aleksandr “Kolento” Malsh is being lined up to take the spot, the Daily Dot has learned—provided Malsh can get his paperwork in order quickly. The tournament begins on Thursday, and the players will be departing Europe in just three days time.

Malsh is one of the highest profile names in Hearthstone, and his inclusion would go a long way to bolster the credentials of the European team. Outside of Thijs “ThijsNL” Molendijk, none of the other European players have any high profile Hearthstone tournament experience. Some have criticized the tournament for using a best of three single elimination format for the qualifiers, increasing the randomness of the matches and making qualification too difficult for even the top players.

Cloud9’s Malsh did attempt to qualify for the event directly, but was not able to make it through the brackets.

Image via DreamHack/Flickr